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The Funniest Foreign Movies

The distinctions between foreign-made movies and a Hollywood one are not just geographical. The cliché of a foreign film often holds true: slow, languid, often depressing, and marred by subtitles. By comparison, many Hollywood movies tend to be glossy, fast-paced affairs, often with formulaic stories and nearly always consumer-friendly. (These are, of course, generalizations.) While there are glorious exceptions to both rules, really great foreign comedies are the perfect place to start if you want to dispel that foreign movie stereotype, which is why Complex has once again come through for you to offer a list of the 25 best foreign comedies you need to watch.

Comedy is very subjective and often touchy subject, so while we won’t try and define what makes for a good comedy movie, it’s safe to say that there are many, many different kinds of styles. Different countries, have their own pop culture references and histories, their own inside jokes and references they find funny, but at the end of the day we all laugh at pretty much the same shit. Some good sarcasm here, a really ironic bit there, a sprinkle of silly jokes and the subversion of expectations will always get a good belly-laugh. So don’t be put off by the fact that these are foreign movies that might have subtitles or is playing at a smaller theater than you’d go to see the summer’s biggest blockbuster or the next Marvel movie. Think of these as merely comedies with actors you haven’t seen in 17 other movies this year, with jokes and situations you haven’t heard before, speaking in accents and languages you might not hear everyday. After all, even Hollywood needs some foreign inspiration sometimes. And, if you are that kind of person, you can suggest you and your friends watch one of these movies you’ve never seen before and definitively say, “I liked that before it went big.” See? We’re always looking out for you.